Ocean flish
|name = Ocean flish |kingdom = Animalia |phylum = Chordata |class = Actinopterygii |image = }} The '''ocean flish' is a species of maritime flish living around the coasts of Pangaea II and the Global Ocean in 200 million AD. The ocean flish has a similar lifestyle to modern-day seagulls and other coastal fishing birds, but since the majority of marine fish are extinct in 200 million AD, the flish feeds on silverswimmers. There are a number of closely related species of ocean flish, including a grebe-like species, a tern-like species, an albatross-like species, an avocet-like species, a skua-like species, and a cormorant-like species. Evolution : See also: Flish#Evolution. The ocean flish appears to be the oldest and most basal of the flish species, as it resembles its cod ancestors more closely than any of the other flish species. It evolved to fill the niche left by extinct seabirds like seagulls and petrels. Closely related species soon diverged to fill other niches: the grebe flish evolved as a filter-feeder; the albatross flish evolved as a migratory hunter; and the skua flish evolved as a scavenger.The Future Is Wild: A Natural History of the Future. Biology Unlike its cousins on dry land, the ocean flish has retained the general physical form of a cod, with large dorsal, anal, and ventral finds, which appear to be useless, simply remnants of the flish's former in the water. The ocean flish's large caudal fin is rotated 90 degrees, resembling a whale's fluke. This makeshift tail is used for takeoff prior to flight. A single powerful thrust of its tail can lift a floating ocean flish clear of the surface, allowing the first sweep of its flying fins to get it airborne immediately. The lateral spread of the caudal fin also provides a control surface, allowing the flish to steer and maneuver while in flight. The ocean flish's primary jaw has evolved to resemble the bill of a bird, with blue and red stripes. However, inside the flish's mouth there is a second set of pharyngeal jaws containing teeth. This set of jaws is larger, raw and red, and can be directed to either the left or the right, improving the flish's ability to pluck prey from the water. In order to float on the surface of the water, ocean flish store air in the lungs, have fat reserves around their chest, and are covered in waterproof, insulating scales. Their flying fins can stretch over their backs like sails and their pelvic fins reach into the sea like a keel, steadying the animals as they float. Behaviour Ocean flish are social animals which hunt in small groups, circling the ocean and searching for prey, before swooping down and grabbing their food with their pharyngeal jaws. When they need to rest during flight, they land on the surface of the ocean and float there, buoyed by the air in their lungs and their fat reserves. However, ocean flish go to the sea only to hunt: at dusk, the flocks return to roost on the rocky outcrops of coastal cliff faces, where they nest. Ecology Different subspecies of ocean flish occupied every different ecological niche for a coastal flying animal. The most common species played the role of a basic seabird, such as a seagull, flying around the coast in flocks and occasionally diving down to catch silverswimmers. All species of ocean flish are preyed on by the rainbow squid. However, perhaps the ocean flish's most important ecological role is in the Rainshadow Desert on the other side of the Pangaea II coastal mountain range. Ocean flish, along with other marine animals, are cast over the mountains during regular hypercanes and tropical storms. Their bodies, known as flishwrecks, are the only food sources for carnivorous animals in the desert, and the bumblebeetle requires a flish carcass for reproduction. Without the ocean flish, the entire ecosystem of this rainshadow desert would collapse. Appearances In the documentary The ocean flish appears in three episodes: "Welcome to the Future", "The Global Ocean", and "Graveyard Desert". In "The Global Ocean", a flock of flish are first shown attacking a shoal of common silverswimmers. One flish goes down to attack another shoal: however, the "shoal" is revealed to be a camouflaged rainbow squid, and the flish is captured, crushed and eaten. In "Graveyard Desert", a powerful tropical storm propels a number of ocean flish over the Pangaea II coastal mountain range, where they die in the heat of the sun. The rest of the episode follows a bumblebeetle as she tries to locate a flish carcass. More ocean flish are cast over the mountains at the end of the episode. In the manga "The Global Ocean" follows an ocean flish who has a pair of chicks in its nest on the land. During one hunt, it is caught by a rainbow squid and loses conciousness, but when it awakes it has managed to escape, albeit with damage to its wings. Unable to fly, it is attacked by a pack of sharkopaths but manages to escape once again, and eventually makes its way back home. Along the way, it catches a silverswimmer for its chicks. List of appearances *''The Future Is Wild'' **1x01. Welcome to the Future **1x11. The Global Ocean **1x12. Graveyard Desert **''The Future Is Wild'' (US) *''The Future Is Wild: A Natural History of the Future'' *''The Future Is Wild'' (fulldome show) *''The Future is Wild'' manga **06. Global Ocean **07. Rainshadow Desert *''The Future Is Wild: The Living Book'' *''The Future Is Wild VR'' Notes *The ocean flish is the only organism to appear in more than one main episode (not counting closely related organisms such as the rattlebacks or flish in general, or the South American rattleback, which has a stock footage cameo in "Cold Kansas Desert", and the swampus, which has a stock footage cameo in "The Tentacled Forest"). However, like all the other animals in "The Global Ocean", it does not appear in the cartoon series. In other languages *French - oisson *German - ozeanflisch *Italian - pesce aliante oceanico *Japanese - ōshanfurisshu (オーシャンフリッシュ) References Navigation Flish, ocean Flish, ocean Flish, ocean Flish, ocean Flish, ocean Category:200 million AD